The National Science Foundation has awarded $998,995 to fund a three-year research project that will unite experts from Cal State San Bernardino, Arizona State University and the University of Michigan. Starting in fall 2024 and running through June 2027, the project will examine the role of environmental justice in clean energy technologies, with a focus on hydrothermal liquefaction, a method that converts food waste into clean energy.

Cal State San Bernardino will receive $308,000 from the grant. Elizabeth Castillo, assistant professor of management at Jack H. Brown College of Business and Public Administration, will lead the university's participation as the principal investigator.

The project, titled "RAISE CET: Changing our value system for clean energy technologies," seeks to integrate environmental justice into the way clean energy businesses are designed and operated. The goal is to understand how environmental justice can improve both the technology and the communities where these firms work. By considering environmental justice from the start, businesses will be better equipped to evaluate their social, environmental and economic impacts.

Traditionally, the effects of environmental justice are considered only after a clean energy technology has been launched. This project aims to change that by embedding environmental justice principles throughout every stage — from design to operation — ensuring fairer and more positive outcomes for affected communities.

The research will concentrate on clean energy projects in the Great Lakes region, with additional input from renewable energy firms across the U.S. The final findings will be shared at a meeting in Washington, D.C., where policy recommendations will be discussed.

This collaboration has the potential to transform the future of clean energy by ensuring that both environmental and social justice are central to technological innovation.